This International Woman’s Day, Waterloo Engineering celebrates Dr. Nadine Ibrahim’s commitment to preparing all her students for a complex world.
Ibrahim, a professor in the University of Waterloo’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Turkstra Chair in Urban Engineering, inspires all her students to think about how the application of their knowledge could create solutions that improve and sustain our humanity and prosperity.
Ibrahim introduces many students to their first university course on sustainable engineering with CIVE 230 Engineering and Sustainable Development. This required class for civil engineering also counts towards the interdisciplinary Diploma in Sustainability. For the course project, students present an innovative idea and visual representation of a sustainable city. These projects are then combined into Sustainability e-books created together by the class.
She also works to bring diverse student groups together to tackle city-level problems with the interdisciplinary Sustainability and Social Entrepreneurship Fellowship (SSEF). Last year she worked with colleagues at the Pearl Sullivan Engineering IDEAs Clinic to bring together international students to work with senior representatives from municipalities from across Canada, which in 2023 was with London, Ontario.
Ibrahim’s commitment to education takes place outside the classrooms too. As vice-president of the Canadian Engineering Education Association (CEEA) and chair of its Engineer of 2050 initiative, she is working to identify attributes that will define the skills future engineers will need to thrive. The findings of this will be shared with CEEA members, engineering institutions and other stakeholders. Coincidentally, this timeline aligns with the University’s “Waterloo at 100” strategy which sets out a vision for the University’s educational role and identity in 2057.
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